tag:theconversation.com,2011:/us/topics/school-budgets-16808/articlesSchool budgets – The Conversation2023-05-15T12:34:19Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2047782023-05-15T12:34:19Z2023-05-15T12:34:19ZShort meetings could encourage teachers to stay on the job<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/525733/original/file-20230511-42642-h5nbrs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=20%2C50%2C6689%2C4396&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Teacher turnover annually costs school districts thousands of dollars.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/school-counselor-talks-withe-group-of-students-royalty-free-image/950887440?phrase=teacher+principal&adppopup=true">SDI Productions via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><em>The <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/topics/research-brief-83231">Research Brief</a> is a short take about interesting academic work.</em> </p>
<h2>The big idea</h2>
<p>A single, 10-minute meeting between teachers and their principals can increase teacher job satisfaction, our new research shows. This increase in job satisfaction could potentially encourage teachers to stay in the profession longer, thereby reducing turnover and potentially saving school districts hundreds of thousands of dollars. </p>
<p>Our pilot study <a href="https://journals.sfu.ca/cvj/index.php/cvj/article/view/113/235">findings were published</a> in the Journal of Leadership, Equity, and Research.</p>
<p>By combining surveys and digital conferencing to gauge how teachers felt before and after they met with their principals, we implemented a novel research design that, to the best of our knowledge, has never been attempted previously. The three teachers who had the meetings were compared to four teachers who did not meet with their principals.</p>
<p>Although there are many factors, such as <a href="https://theconversation.com/is-it-time-for-teachers-to-get-a-raise-199687">relatively low salaries</a> and lack of support from colleagues, that <a href="https://learningpolicyinstitute.org/node/2448">contribute to teacher turnover</a>, teachers also frequently mention <a href="https://doi.org/10.3102/0162373716659929">inadequate support from school principals</a> as a major reason for leaving the profession. Due to increasing demands on school administrators’ time, a commitment of only 10 minutes could have a lot of appeal if later on, that 10 minutes can save countless hours that would otherwise be spent on attracting and hiring new teachers to replace the ones that leave.</p>
<h2>Why it matters</h2>
<p>Half of U.S. teachers <a href="https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED556348">leave the profession within their first five years on the job</a>. These early departures occur most often in <a href="https://learningpolicyinstitute.org/product/teacher-turnover-report">schools located in poorer, rural and inner-city areas</a>. </p>
<p>Very often these schools have <a href="https://www.gao.gov/assets/gao-23-105180.pdf">higher percentages of students who require remedial or specialized learning environments</a>. In terms of subject matter, <a href="https://epaa.asu.edu/index.php/epaa/article/view/3696/2228">many schools are struggling</a> to find qualified math and science teachers, as well as teachers who are certified to teach English language learners.</p>
<p>Studies have also shown that many schools with lower student achievement <a href="https://learningpolicyinstitute.org/sites/default/files/product-files/Teaching_Experience_Report_June_2016.pdf">have disproportionately high numbers of inexperienced teachers</a>.</p>
<p>While our study involved 10-minute meetings, we recognize that school principals need to do more than just hold these meetings to ensure they are supporting their teachers effectively. Recent research has shown that COVID-19 <a href="https://cceam.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/ISEA-2021-49-No-1.pdf#page=115">led to lower job satisfaction among teachers</a>, placing greater demands on school principals to support their teachers.</p>
<p>Depending on the location, the <a href="https://nieer.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/NCTAFCostofTeacherTurnoverpolicybrief.pdf">cost of replacing each teacher</a> is between US$10,000 and $20,000. Taken nationally, these costs amount to $7.3 billion annually that could be spent on facilities, programs, meals and supplies to directly assist students.</p>
<h2>What’s next</h2>
<p>We are making plans to expand this intervention research to include a much larger population of teachers – 500 from one state, to be exact – and administrators.</p>
<p>We also plan to investigate the role that social media plays in how the general public, and specifically aspiring teachers, view the teaching profession. Thirty years ago, burned-out teachers were limited in expressing their workplace challenges to friends, family and others in their local communities. With the advent of social media, however, they are able to broadcast these struggles to anyone with internet access, across the country and around the world. </p>
<p>Determining the factors that contribute to the number of teachers who enter the profession is also just as important as keeping teachers in their classrooms longer.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/204778/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>James Martinez does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Could a 10-minute meeting between teachers and principals reduce teacher turnover? A researcher explores the possibilities.James Martinez, Assistant Professor of Educational Leadership, University of TennesseeLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1733152022-01-18T13:40:06Z2022-01-18T13:40:06ZMore than masks and critical race theory – 3 tasks you should be prepared to do before you run for school board<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/440547/original/file-20220112-35588-1rkswn4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=33%2C0%2C5500%2C3691&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">School board elections are increasingly contested. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/chris-tough-reacts-in-objection-during-a-portland-public-news-photo/1236153993?adppopup=true">Nathan Howard/Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>When people run for school board these days, they often are motivated to <a href="https://ballotpedia.org/Conflicts_in_school_board_elections,_2021-2022">campaign on a controverisial topic</a>. That’s according to Ballotpedia, a nonprofit that tracks political elections in the U.S.</p>
<p>In an analysis of school board elections in <a href="https://ballotpedia.org/School_board_elections,_2021">463 school districts in 2021</a>, the organization found elections that were once uncontested had drawn candidates who were “<a href="https://apnews.com/article/health-education-coronavirus-pandemic-school-boards-e41350b7d9e3662d279c2dad287f7009">galvanized by one issue or another</a>.”</p>
<p>Three issues came up the most. The most oft-cited issue was race in education, more specifically, the <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/education/2021/11/03/school-board-races-show-mixed-results-critical-race-theory/6271364001/">teaching of critical race theory</a>. The second most frequently cited issue was <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2021/11/03/politics/school-board-elections/index.html">school policies on the pandemic</a> – that is, requirements to wear masks or get vaccinations, or school reopening. The third most-cited was <a href="https://ballotpedia.org/Conflicts_in_school_board_elections_about_sex_and_gender_in_schools,_2021-2022">sex and gender in schools</a>, such as gender-specific facilities.</p>
<p>As of January 2022, Ballotpedia discovered 287 school districts in 25 states where candidates took a position on race in education; 199 school districts in 23 states where candidates took a position on responses to the coronavirus pandemic; and 144 school districts in 18 states where candidates took a position on sex and gender in schools.</p>
<h2>A worrisome trend</h2>
<p>As a former school board member – and as a <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=6gc1wl0AAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">researcher who studies educational leadership and policy</a> – I find it worrisome when polarizing issues generate so much attention from candidates. The reason I worry is that I know from firsthand experience that being an effective school board member is never just about taking a stance on a few hot-button topics. Rather, it’s about much broader issues, such as meeting the educational needs of all students in the school district.</p>
<p>Too often, support for candidates hinges on the positions they take on the most controversial issues. For instance, in Florida, Gov. Ron DeSantis, speaking on behalf of his state’s Republican Party, <a href="https://floridapolitics.com/archives/434128-political-apparatus/">pledged</a> to withhold support from “any Republican candidate for school board who supports critical race theory in all 67 counties or supports mandatory masking of schoolchildren.” </p>
<p>As impassioned as people may be about issues like mask requirements, keeping schools open or confronting issues of race in the curriculum, running a school district is about much more than any one of those single issues. With that in mind, here are three actions that future school board candidates should be prepared to take.</p>
<h2>1. Set district policy</h2>
<p>A primary function of the school board is to develop, review and approve district policy. These policies can include implementing state mandates – such as establishing <a href="https://www.ecs.org/high-school-graduation-requirements/">high school graduation requirements</a> – or formulating a <a href="https://kappanonline.org/mapping-teacher-evaluation-plans-essa-close-amrein-beardsley-collins/">plan to evaluate teachers</a>.</p>
<p>Some policies take on broad issues that affect all students. For instance, a policy might express a goal to make sure <a href="https://www.edweek.org/policy-politics/making-sure-every-child-has-home-internet-access-8-steps-to-get-there/2020/09">all students have access to the internet at home</a>. Other policies might deal with smaller matters, such as whether <a href="https://hudsonvalleyone.com/2017/01/25/should-homeschooled-kids-be-able-to-participate-in-all-school-clubs/">home-schooled students can participate in extracurricular activities</a> at the local public school.</p>
<h2>2. Make tough budget decisions</h2>
<p>One of the most difficult tasks that school board members must do is decide how to spend the school district’s limited revenue.</p>
<p>The vast majority of a district’s budget – about <a href="https://www.aasa.org/uploadedfiles/policy_and_advocacy/files/schoolbudgetbrieffinal.pdf">80% to 85%</a> – goes to personnel costs, such as salaries and benefits for school staff. Paying for these employee expenditures is becoming more challenging because of the <a href="https://www.asbonewyork.org/news/407485/School-District-Health-Care-Costs-Rise-Faster-than-Inflation-and-Total-Spending.htm">rising cost of health insurance</a>. </p>
<p>To stay within budget, school board members may have to cut positions or programs. It’s usually a matter of assessing tradeoffs: Do we cut our gifted and talented program to keep our school safety officer? Do we cut teaching positions to make the budget, and if so, which ones? </p>
<p>Each decision comes with consequences. For instance, cutting a gifted and talented program would make some families upset. Continued funding of a night school program might require a series of budget reductions in other areas, such as field trips or late buses.</p>
<p>A tough budget choice I remember facing as a school board member was deciding whether to renovate an outdated and undersized school theater. The board members all agreed the theater was in desperate need of an upgrade but decided to put off the theater upgrade to deal with other needs. The high school would soon need a new roof and boiler that ultimately took priority.</p>
<h2>3. Select a superintendent</h2>
<p>Selecting a district leader is critically important. So is deciding whether to keep or get rid of one. A good superintendent can make or break a district. The superintendent is the face of the school community and the district’s instructional leader.</p>
<p>Superintendents work with the school board to set the vision and goals for the district and then make sure they are achieved. They also hire and manage principals and other district leaders. Superintendents are expected to provide for the safety of children and staff and be good stewards of district finances.</p>
<p>Finding a good superintendent involves looking for leaders who have a proven track record in the areas of importance. Do they have a history of improving student achievement? Have they created a positive school climate and culture? Are they effective communicators? </p>
<p>If a school board chooses an ineffective superintendent, it usually sets a district back and the board ends up having to spend time and money to replace them.</p>
<p>A key distinction of American democracy is that candidates can develop platforms as they see fit, and it’s up to voters to decide if a particular candidate will represent their concerns. But when it comes to running a school system, it’s important to keep in mind that it involves much more than taking a stance on a few controversial issues. It’s also about making sound financial decisions and implementing policies that ensure all students get the education they deserve.</p>
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<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Casey D. Cobb is affiliated with the National Education Policy Center.</span></em></p>School board elections are becoming increasingly fractious and political events, with candidates focused on one or two issues. An education policy scholar explains why that’s a worrisome trend.Casey D. Cobb, Neag Professor of Educational Policy, University of ConnecticutLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1210782019-08-05T12:57:22Z2019-08-05T12:57:22ZHow the University of Alaska – and other public U.S. universities – now struggle for funding<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/286651/original/file-20190801-169714-oo6j0d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A view of University of Alaska Fairbanks.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/university-alaska-fairbanks-city-winter-sunset-42202879?src=9yezIQ6VpP5pyBE9vAoQzQ-1-1&studio=1">Gary Whitton/Shutterstock.com</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The higher education world has been rocked by the news that <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-alaska-politics/deep-budget-cuts-put-university-of-alaska-in-crisis-mode-grappling-with-survival-idUSKCN1UH2H0">the University of Alaska’s state appropriations were slashed</a> by nearly $136 million, 41% of its general fund appropriation to the university.</p>
<p>To make matters worse, the cuts are in this year’s general fund budget, which started on July 1. As a result, the university must quickly decrease spending before it drains its operating reserves and runs out of cash.</p>
<p>For the university, all of this is bad news. But the University of Alaska is not alone. Many other public universities have also reckoned with reduced state support. </p>
<p>Over 20 years ago, I confronted a similar crisis at the University of Hawaii, <a href="https://www.chronicle.com/article/U-of-Hawaii-Struggles-to/77438">following a precipitous budget cut of 15% by the state</a>. Although the cut was less than that of Alaska, its impact on university operations was painful. We survived intact <a href="https://www.chronicle.com/article/U-of-Hawaii-Struggles-to/77438">by making unpopular reallocations and raising tuition</a> by about 70% in a two-year period. </p>
<p>Not surprisingly, enrollment dropped for several years as students shied away from paying higher tuition to attend a financially troubled university. But, after several years, the state economy improved, cuts were restored and the students returned. </p>
<p>Likewise, I believe that the University of Alaska will survive, but probably in a changed form. For starters, the governing board has already voted to <a href="http://www.newsminer.com/news/local_news/ua-regents-vote-for-consolidated-university-system/article_46ad9626-b35b-11e9-898c-9f27fe8bc9aa.html">consolidate the system’s three separate universities into a single comprehensive university</a>. </p>
<p>Other less dramatic changes will probably follow. Difficult decisions will be made, and their scars will take time to heal.</p>
<h2>State support for higher education declines nationwide</h2>
<p>Nationwide, <a href="https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d16/tables/dt16_333.10.asp">money from state governments</a> has become a smaller and smaller fraction of public higher education budgets during the past decade. </p>
<p><iframe id="dC0YG" class="tc-infographic-datawrapper" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/dC0YG/2/" height="400px" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<p>State appropriations still exceed tuition and fees as a revenue source for two-year institutions. But, since 2011, for four-year institutions the percentage of total revenue from state appropriations has dropped below the percentage of total revenue from tuition and fees. </p>
<p>In some public universities, state appropriations now constitute less than 5% <a href="https://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/datacenter/DataFiles.aspx">of their total budget</a>. </p>
<p>With the announced cuts, the amount of state money <a href="https://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/datacenter/DataFiles.aspx">going to the University of Alaska</a> will decrease from 37% to 25% of its total revenue -— still more than many other state universities. With the proposed cut, <a href="https://www.alaska.edu/ir/reporting/">total revenue will be about $753 million</a>. </p>
<p>If the University of Alaska stands out in this trend, it is because of the suddenness of the huge budget cut. As the situation now stands, the university must accommodate the loss of $136 million within less than a year. </p>
<p>To soften the blow, the Alaska governor has proposed <a href="https://www.adn.com/alaska-news/education/2019/07/26/heres-dunleavys-proposed-step-down-approach-for-university-of-alaska-funding/">spreading the cuts over a two-year period</a>. But, there’s a catch. The governor’s proposal identifies the specific programs to be cut, usurping the university’s authority over these academic matters. The university may not agree to this proposal. </p>
<h2>Reduce expenditures</h2>
<p>Decisions must be made. </p>
<p>The first decision is the easiest: how to stanch expenditures in the short run. The university might impose a hiring freeze, defer repairs and maintenance, or cancel library subscriptions. For example, several years ago, <a href="https://today.uic.edu/university-grapples-with-state-budget-uncertainties">the University of Illinois implemented these standard measures</a> in response to a large reduction in state support. </p>
<p>The University of Alaska has already made the decision to do these things. But, these short-run methods are unsustainable. Sooner or later, departments will have to fill vacant teaching positions, the physical plant has to be maintained, and the library must provide access to current publications. </p>
<p>Thus, the next decision must be made, and it is the hardest: how to reduce operational costs in the long run. </p>
<p>Again, an obvious method comes to mind. Consolidate or close programs, which would include firing staff in those programs. </p>
<p>But which ones? This decision usually involves an analysis of the university’s departments, degree programs, athletic teams or even entire campuses. Particular attention focuses on programs with declining enrollment, accreditation problems, or low academic productivity.</p>
<p>These are not easy analyses, especially for faculty members. They are time-consuming and contentious, because they set faculty members against each other. Faculty unions are particularly sensitive to this issue. </p>
<p>To save $5 million, the University of Montana, for example, <a href="https://missoulian.com/news/local/university-of-montana-budget-cuts-million-but-avoids-cutting-tenured/article_33f60447-8f5e-56d0-b2c8-a59df5b526db.html">wound down 16 degree programs and reduced faculty numbers school-wide by 12%</a>. </p>
<p>The University of Alaska has taken an important first step in this painful process by <a href="https://www.alaskapublic.org/2019/07/22/university-of-alaska-regents-vote-to-declare-financial-exigency/">declaring a financial exigency</a>. Theoretically, this declaration makes it easier for the governing board to close programs and terminate personnel, <a href="https://www.moodys.com/research/Moodys-Public-universities-may-declare-financial-exigency-to-trim-faculty--PR_215295">including tenured faculty members</a>.</p>
<p>Realistically, after the decisions have been made, I have found that consolidating or closing the targeted programs can be devilishly difficult, if not impossible. Every academic program seems to have its protective constituents, and, one way or another, they can exert strong pressure to maintain status quo, regardless of budgetary implications. </p>
<p>Overcoming this pressure requires tremendous resolve on the part of the governing board, as the University of Alaska will soon discover.</p>
<h2>Find new revenue</h2>
<p>Like other universities faced with reduced state support, the University of Alaska will begin the search for new sources of money. </p>
<p>For starters, it will most probably raise tuition. That’s what most other universities <a href="https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2017/07/24/new-study-attempts-show-how-much-state-funding-cuts-push-tuition">have done in this situation</a>. Notably, tuition and enrollment obey the law of demand: <a href="https://jhupbooks.press.jhu.edu/title/university-finances">as tuition goes up, enrollment goes down</a>.</p>
<p>The university will have to search elsewhere as well. Many public universities <a href="https://agb.org/trusteeship-article/how-is-fundraising-for-public-higher-education-changing/">look to private donations for additional money to offset reduced state support</a>. Many of them have launched <a href="https://news.umich.edu/u-michigan-raises-5b-shattering-records-for-public-universities/">fundraising campaigns</a>, sometimes with massive goals of a billion dollars or more. </p>
<p>How much money does the University of Alaska, or any other university for that matter, really need? </p>
<p>Paraphrasing a common aphorism, the answer is simple: way too much isn’t nearly enough. A university’s hunger for money is insatiable. After all, with more money, it can reduce class sizes, offer more financial aid, increase faculty salaries, open new campuses, and on and on.</p>
<p>Ultimately, the accrediting associations have the only meaningful answer to that question. If they judge that budget cuts cause educational quality to fall below their standards for comparable institutions, the associations will withhold accreditation. </p>
<p>Initially, the university is placed on probation, with a time line for correcting its deficiencies. Loss of accreditation is a rare occurrence for public universities, but <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-watchdogs-of-college-education-rarely-bite-1434594602">the threat is unnerving</a>. Without accreditation, the institution can no longer participate in federal lending programs for students. And, that is when the downward spiral begins, as a handful of small private institutions have learned. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2019/07/10/u-alaskas-accreditor-warns-funding-cuts-could-threaten-systems-status">accreditors</a> have their watchful eyes on the University of Alaska as it begins its painful adjustment to financial reality.</p>
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<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Dean O. Smith does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Nationwide, state government money has become a smaller and smaller fraction of public higher education budgets.Dean O. Smith, Professor Emeritus, University of HawaiiLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1040122018-09-28T10:50:44Z2018-09-28T10:50:44ZHeadteachers march: the school funding protests explained<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/238332/original/file-20180927-48641-14eic19.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Headteachers have been campaigning for years to get improved real terms funding, but matters are not improving.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/download/success?u=http%3A%2F%2Fdownload.shutterstock.com%2Fgatekeeper%2FW3siZSI6MTUzODA3MjEwMiwiYyI6Il9waG90b19zZXNzaW9uX2lkIiwiZGMiOiJpZGxfMjk5NjU1OTM1IiwiayI6InBob3RvLzI5OTY1NTkzNS9odWdlLmpwZyIsIm0iOjEsImQiOiJzaHV0dGVyc3RvY2stbWVkaWEifSwiM2t2alhWaUd5V3NJbTZXQXVNVFM5NTBtOURJIl0%2Fshutterstock_299655935.jpg&ir=true&pi=11079995&m=299655935&src=b_AK9KngbG4fA-Uuoh85SQ-1-1">Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Hundreds of headteachers from schools across the country <a href="https://www.tes.com/news/need-know-1000-heads-march-downing-street">marching on Downing Street</a> is not something you see very often. But many school leaders feel compelled to take drastic action over the issue of school funding. <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-much-is-too-much-to-pay-headteachers-36001">Headteachers</a> are not normally a militant group – they tend to spend their working days encouraging others to conform. But lack of money has caused them to take to the streets. </p>
<p>For several years now headteachers, principals and CEOs of multi-academy trusts have been calling for adequate and fairer funding for their schools. At first glance it might seem their cries have been answered: government ministers and DfE officials <a href="https://twitter.com/educationgovuk/status/989118102309949441">repeatedly state</a> that “there is more money going into our schools than ever before”. And, with total school funding set to rise to more than £40 billion by 2020, you might wonder what heads have got to complain about.</p>
<p>Funding is of course only half the story, as expenses are also increasing. The <a href="https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/719226/Schools_Pupils_and_their_Characteristics_2018_Main_Text.pdf">DfE’s own statistics</a>, updated annually, show that over the past 10 years the total number of children in state-funded primary and secondary schools has risen from 7.4m to just under 8m – a rise of 8%.</p>
<h2>Meaningless statistics</h2>
<p>The notion that more money is going into schools is based on meaningless statistics. Because as well as the number of children in schools increasing, the costs of goods and services have also increased over the past decade. So the issue is more about how much funding per pupil has changed in real terms, after the effects of inflation have been taken into account.</p>
<p>The secretary of state for education, <a href="https://theconversation.com/some-advice-for-damian-hinds-in-his-new-role-as-education-secretary-its-time-to-get-bold-on-inequality-89895">Damian Hinds</a>, appeared to answer this question directly in response to a parliamentary question in January, when he stated that “real terms funding per pupil is increasing across the system”. </p>
<p>The minister’s assertion was <a href="https://www.statisticsauthority.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/20180308_Letter_to_Angela_Rayner_Education_funding.pdf">challenged by the UK Statistics Authority</a> which forced an amendment to the <a href="https://hansard.parliament.uk/commons/2018-03-05/debates/C0AB4135-7432-4053-A670-66901BC92AB5/Education%20-%202MC">parliamentary record</a>. The amendment stated that Mr Hinds had made an error and that in fact he could only say that overall real terms funding per pupil is being maintained between 2017 and 2020 – after again <a href="https://theconversation.com/fact-check-is-education-spending-at-the-highest-level-on-record-76610">repeating that</a> “there is more money going into our schools in this country than ever before”.</p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/small-village-schools-are-at-risk-of-closure-because-of-unfunded-costs-71665">Small village schools are at risk of closure because of unfunded costs</a>
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</em>
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<p>Calculating real terms increases is something of a dark art, open to a degree of interpretation and requiring some assumptions. However, robust independent <a href="https://www.ifs.org.uk/uploads/publications/comms/R126.pdf">analysis by the IFS</a> suggests that although school funding per pupil nearly doubled between 1997 and 2016, the real terms value is set to fall by 2020.</p>
<p>This explains the concern of headteachers and the identification of a funding crisis. They may have a bottom line budget figure that is bigger than last year’s – but by the time they’ve taken into account additional pupils, growing staffing costs and the rise in prices that we all experience, they have less to spend per pupil. </p>
<h2>‘Fairer’ funding</h2>
<p>A further change that will bite in some schools is a new “fairer” funding formula. Similar schools in different parts of the country have received varying rates of funding based on a locally implemented funding formula that has at its heart the number of children in the school. From 2018 a new national formula is being implemented, which aims to treat schools more fairly.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/238321/original/file-20180927-48631-14ho5hv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/238321/original/file-20180927-48631-14ho5hv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/238321/original/file-20180927-48631-14ho5hv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/238321/original/file-20180927-48631-14ho5hv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/238321/original/file-20180927-48631-14ho5hv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/238321/original/file-20180927-48631-14ho5hv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/238321/original/file-20180927-48631-14ho5hv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Headteachers taking part in last year’s Worth Less? campaign.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.facebook.com/pg/WorthLessWestSussex/photos/?tab=album&album_id=1646770578928446">Worth Less?/Facebook</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The new formula has of course stimulated debate – but it’s a debate in which some school leaders have refused to engage. Their argument is that there is little point in discussing how a pie is shared out, if the pie itself is not big enough in the first place. Once again it’s a real terms argument about the actual cash available to spend on children in schools.</p>
<p>So, will a visit to Downing Street make any difference? So far there have been no signs that the government’s approach will differ from that of Mr Hinds – of simply looking at the global spending figure. And in that sense, the response still looks set to be “we’ll give you more altogether, but you’ll receive less per pupil”.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/104012/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Chris Rolph does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Why are headteachers from across the country protesting at Westminster?Chris Rolph, Principal Lecturer in Education, Nottingham Trent UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/782992017-06-26T01:08:06Z2017-06-26T01:08:06ZTextbooks in the digital world<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/174777/original/file-20170620-32381-3yaofb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Ella Russell, a second grade student at Jamestown Elementary School in Arlington, Virginia, works on an e-book during class.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>For decades, textbooks were seen as the foundation for instruction in American schools. These discipline-specific tomes were a fundamental part of the educational infrastructure, assigned to students for each subject and carried in heavy backpacks every day – from home to school and back again.</p>
<p>The experience of students is much different today.</p>
<p>As a scholar of learning technologies and a director for outreach and engagement at Ohio State’s College of Education and Human Ecology, we’ve seen how technological advances and an increase in digital curriculum materials have hastened the move away from textbooks.</p>
<p>Does all of this technology spell the end of traditional textbooks? And if so, is that actually a good thing for students and teachers?</p>
<h2>Standards and the decline of textbooks</h2>
<p>In 1983, President Ronald Reagan’s National Commission on Excellence in Education released “<a href="https://www2.ed.gov/pubs/NatAtRisk/risk.html">A Nation at Risk</a>,” which put a spotlight on school quality and accountability for student achievement. By the mid-1990s, the academic standards movement had picked up steam, spurred by “Goals 2000,” the <a href="https://archive.org/details/ERIC_ED359637">Educate America Act of 1994</a>. In response, states and local communities drafted guidelines to indicate what students should know at each grade level.</p>
<p>With these guidelines, educators and policymakers began to question teachers’ reliance on textbooks. Education organizations examined textbooks not only for their accuracy and quality, but for their <a href="http://www.project2061.org/publications/textbook/hsbio/report/analysis.htm">alignment to academic standards</a>. Where once student success was marked by the end-of-chapter test for whatever textbook each school happened to use, success was now measured by how well students met standardized grade-level learning objectives. Different textbooks might produce different levels of knowledge and understanding from students, but the new standards were common across an entire state.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/174781/original/file-20170620-26746-1e5d8h2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/174781/original/file-20170620-26746-1e5d8h2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/174781/original/file-20170620-26746-1e5d8h2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/174781/original/file-20170620-26746-1e5d8h2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/174781/original/file-20170620-26746-1e5d8h2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/174781/original/file-20170620-26746-1e5d8h2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/174781/original/file-20170620-26746-1e5d8h2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/174781/original/file-20170620-26746-1e5d8h2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A science textbook used in Hardin County schools in 2012 still listed Pluto as a full-fledged planet – six years after it was reclassified as a dwarf planet.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">AP Photo/Bruce Schreiner</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Increased access to digital content</h2>
<p>With the rise of the internet and the proliferation of online content, teachers have found new sources to support student learning.</p>
<p>Recent studies report that <a href="https://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2010040">student-computer ratios</a> in most U.S. schools have reached 5:1 (five students per computer), with almost all teachers having access to at least one computer in their classroom. <a href="https://marketbrief.edweek.org/marketplace-k-12/half_of_k-12_students_to_have_access_to_1-to-1_computing_by_2015-16_1/">One-to-one laptop programs</a>, which provide every student with a computing device, have spread across multiple states.</p>
<p>To support these initiatives, schools have access to a wealth of free and premium content designed specifically for a K-12 curriculum. Most textbook publishing companies have launched digital platforms; in fact, several have <a href="http://investors.mheducation.com/home/default.aspx">transformed their core identities</a> from traditional textbook publishers to learning science companies or digital education companies.</p>
<p>Much of this digitized content has blurred the definition of a “book.” Digital lessons can present information through dynamic, interactive features like simulations and videos. Digital textbooks can also provide support features that just aren’t possible in a print textbook: students can highlight text, search for content, change the font size or use text-to-speech audio.</p>
<figure>
<iframe src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/221616328" width="500" height="281" frameborder="0" webkitallowfullscreen="" mozallowfullscreen="" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Discovery Education is one of the biggest players in K-12 digital textbooks.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Teachers are also looking outside the world of K-12 education to support their lessons. Content freely available on the internet (including digital collections by the <a href="http://library.si.edu/exhibitions/online">Smithsonian</a>, <a href="https://www.loc.gov/collections/">Library of Congress</a> and <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/dln">NASA</a>) has created new opportunities for teaching and learning. Teachers can make classes more dynamic, more accurate and more customizable to meet the <a href="https://tech.ed.gov/files/2017/01/NETP17.pdf">personalized learning needs of individual students</a>.</p>
<h2>Challenges in the digital world</h2>
<p>But it’s not all good news. Schools are also confronting new challenges brought on by digital content.</p>
<p>Textbooks are relatively easy to use. The same is not necessarily true for digital resources, which might require technological expertise – on the part of the teacher or an in-school specialist – to implement well. Moreover, teachers’ <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2012.02.001">beliefs about technology integration</a> are still barriers for adopting digital content in classrooms.</p>
<p>There’s also a question of cost. Well-equipped schools are eagerly “going digital,” often <a href="http://www.ascd.org/ASCD/pdf/siteASCD/misc/DigitalContentTrendsReport.pdf">reallocating their textbook budgets</a> to purchase these materials. However, a lot of schools struggle to cover the costs of making the transition. Similarly, some schools, specifically those in rural communities, find it difficult to access wireless or high-speed internet services needed for digital learning: In 2016, <a href="https://www.brookings.edu/blog/techtank/2016/07/18/rural-and-urban-america-divided-by-broadband-access/">39 percent of rural areas</a> lacked broadband internet.</p>
<h2>How to choose digital content</h2>
<p>Infrastructure and technological know-how aren’t the only obstacles. Digital education resources also vary in quality, and selecting the right content can be a major challenge for schools.</p>
<p>That means that a teacher’s ability to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2017.05.006">evaluate and select digital content</a> becomes an important requirement for digital learning. Teachers need to be able to find the right resources for their lessons – and make sure they’re high quality, aligned to standards and compatible with existing tools. Without these skills, teachers <a href="http://www.ascd.org/ASCD/pdf/siteASCD/misc/DigitalContentTrendsReport.pdf">struggle to integrate technology and digital content</a> with their own teaching methods.</p>
<p>Most teachers rarely get the opportunity to learn how to evaluate, select and integrate digital resources into their classrooms. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s11423-017-9519-0">Professional development programs</a> and resources from <a href="http://www.setda.org/priorities/digital-content/">educational support</a> <a href="https://www.inacol.org/resources/">organizations</a> can help teachers make the transition to digital content.</p>
<p>While these resources exist, not enough teachers are able to take advantage of them. Our research indicated that the majority of teachers rate themselves low when asked to indicate their knowledge and skill in digital content evaluation.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/174775/original/file-20170620-32390-awxuah.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/174775/original/file-20170620-32390-awxuah.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/174775/original/file-20170620-32390-awxuah.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=404&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/174775/original/file-20170620-32390-awxuah.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=404&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/174775/original/file-20170620-32390-awxuah.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=404&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/174775/original/file-20170620-32390-awxuah.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=508&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/174775/original/file-20170620-32390-awxuah.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=508&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/174775/original/file-20170620-32390-awxuah.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=508&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Eighth grader Aklya Thomas and teacher Faren Fransworth use a digital textbook during a math class at Burney Harris Lyons Middle School in Athens, Georgia.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">AP Photo/John Bazemore</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Embracing digital</h2>
<p>So, do we still need textbooks? Yes. But the composition as well as the role of textbooks is changing. They’re becoming more digitized, more open, more affordable, more dynamic and interactive, and more frequently updated.</p>
<p>Schools are buying <a href="http://www.ascd.org/ASCD/pdf/siteASCD/misc/DigitalContentTrendsReport.pdf">fewer textbooks</a> and are more often using them only as classroom or library reference materials or to teach special topics. Many school districts are shifting funds from their textbook budgets to purchase devices and digital content, but are making changes incrementally and replacing books with digital content based on their 3- to 5-year curriculum adoption schedules.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, the proliferation of technology tools and resources has transformed the learning landscape. The shift from print to digital has given students and teachers access to content that exceeds the quantity and quality of a traditional textbook. With these advances come more engaging and exciting ways for students (and teachers) to learn.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/78299/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kui Xie receives funding from Ohio Department of Education and Ohio Department of Higher Education. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Nicole Luthy receives funding from the Ohio Department of Higher Education, the Ohio Department of Education, and the US Department of Education. </span></em></p>Textbooks were once a major piece of educational infrastructure. But as digital content expands, a new kind of ‘textbook’ is improving the quality of K-12 instruction.Kui Xie, Cyphert Distinguished Professor of Learning Technologies; Director of The Research Laboratory for Digital Learning, The Ohio State UniversityNicole Luthy, Director of Outreach and Engagement in the Office of Diversity, Inclusion and Community Engagement, The Ohio State UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/766102017-05-04T21:09:48Z2017-05-04T21:09:48ZFact Check: is education spending at the highest level on record?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/167763/original/file-20170503-21649-j7la0l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The school funding problem.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><blockquote>
<p>The level of funding going into schools is at record levels. </p>
</blockquote>
<p><strong>Prime Minister Theresa May <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b08plldm/the-andrew-marr-show-30042017">in an interview</a> with Andrew Marr on the BBC on April 30, 2017.</strong></p>
<p>As she hit the campaign trail, Theresa May repeated a claim she has made several times before, including <a href="https://hansard.parliament.uk/commons/2017-04-19/debates/E28A633C-8DC8-4FAF-9258-2835F24836CB/Engagements">during</a> Prime Minister’s Questions in April, that education spending is at its highest ever level.</p>
<p>Her claim is based on Department of Education figures, which come from a National Audit Office report into the financial sustainability of schools. This report references the government’s total core schools budget, which is said to be at the highest ever level.</p>
<p>A Department of Education blog on school funding also details how <a href="https://dfemedia.blog.gov.uk/2017/03/22/education-in-the-media-22-march-2017/">school funding is</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>At its highest on record at more than £40 billion in 2016 to 2017 and is set to rise to £42 billion in 2019 to 2020, with increasing pupil numbers. </p>
</blockquote>
<p>When Theresa May made the claim, she was talking specifically about education in England, and she is referring to the “dedicated schools grant”. This is the whole block of money going to schools in England every year – which currently stands at £40 billion.</p>
<p>But while the <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dedicated-schools-grant-dsg-2016-to-2017">£40 billion number</a> is about accurate and it is true that this is higher than in previous years, it is not the whole story.</p>
<p>This is because in terms of education spending, it is the “per pupil expenditure” – literally the amount spent on each pupil – that is relevant and not the total amount of the “dedicated schools grant”. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.ifs.org.uk/publications/8937">Recent research</a> on the subject has shown that day-to-day or current spending per pupil in England was largely frozen in real terms between 2010 and 2011 and 2015 and 2016. </p>
<p>Moreover, from 2015 to 2016 onwards school spending has been frozen in cash terms, which is likely to translate into a real terms reduction of around 6.5% between 2015 to 2016 and 2019 to 2020. </p>
<p>This would be the biggest real-term fall in school spending per pupil for 30 years. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/167764/original/file-20170503-21641-gf0kyk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/167764/original/file-20170503-21641-gf0kyk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/167764/original/file-20170503-21641-gf0kyk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/167764/original/file-20170503-21641-gf0kyk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/167764/original/file-20170503-21641-gf0kyk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/167764/original/file-20170503-21641-gf0kyk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/167764/original/file-20170503-21641-gf0kyk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Head teachers could bring in a four-and-a-half day week in schools around England to help ease budget pressures.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The outlook for spending per student in further education (age 16-18) is much worse, with the same research forecasting that this is likely to fall by around 13% between 2010 and 2011 and 2019 and 2020.</p>
<p>We should be worried about these cuts in school and further education expenditure, given not only the financial implications, but also because there is good evidence which shows that expenditure levels have a <a href="http://cep.lse.ac.uk/pubs/download/dp1226.pdf">direct impact on pupil performance</a>. </p>
<p>Research has also shown that <a href="http://www.lse.ac.uk/researchAndExpertise/units/growthCommission/documents/pdf/2017LSEGCReport.pdf">education plays an important role</a>
in generating improved productivity and growth and this is also acknowledged in the government’s own <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/586626/building-our-industrial-strategy-green-paper.pdf">industrial strategy</a>. It makes no sense then to actually disinvest in a “key pillar” of the industrial strategy. </p>
<h2>Verdict</h2>
<p>Theresa May’s claim is misleading because it omits important information, particularly details on “per pupil spending” which is the key figure here. When you look at the “per pupil” figures, it is clear to see that rather than being at the “highest levels”, school funding per pupil has been constant in the last few years. Research has also shown that “per pupil spending” is projected to fall dramatically in the coming years – which could have a direct impact on school budgets and pupil performance.</p>
<h2>Review</h2>
<p><em>Stephen Gorard, Professor in the School of Education, Durham University</em></p>
<p>While this Fact Check complains that Theresa May’s statement on school spending is not the “whole story”, according to official figures the prime minister’s statement is indeed correct – in the context of the schools budget in England. And this spending is set to rise in future years as pupil numbers increase.</p>
<p>The author is correct to point out that per pupil spending is at least as important as the overall total. But the <a href="https://www.ifs.org.uk/publications/8937">research mentioned above</a> shows that even this was still at a historical high in 2015 and 2016 – the most recent complete school year. </p>
<p>The same research shows that in real terms – allowing for inflation – per pupil spending has doubled since the 1997 to 1998 school year. It does predict that a freeze on total spending will lead to a real terms decrease in successive years, but this had not happened at time of writing. </p>
<p>Of course, none of this means that expenditure on schools is sufficient, or that we would not want more. Declines in spending would now be difficult for schools to cope with. Nor does it mean that the money is being spent wisely or in the most effective fashion by governments. </p>
<p><em>The Conversation is checking claims made by public figures. Statements are checked by an academic with expertise in the area. A second academic expert then reviews an anonymous copy of the article. Please get in touch if you spot a claim you would like us to check by emailing us at <a href="uk-factcheck@theconversation.com">uk-factcheck@theconversation.com</a>. Please include the statement you would like us to check, the date it was made, and a link if possible.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/76610/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Sandra McNally receives funding from the Centre for Vocational Education Research, which is funded by the Department for Education. The views in this article do not represent those of the government. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Stephen Gorard is a researcher working on academic projects funded by ESRC, EEF and the NLT. The views in this article do not represent those of the research councils. </span></em></p>‘Per pupil expenditure’ is where the real story lies.Sandra McNally, Professor in the School of Economics, University of SurreyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/694062016-11-27T19:14:13Z2016-11-27T19:14:13ZNew model for school funding that won’t break the budget<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/147515/original/image-20161125-15351-1v414nk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A new model proposes to fix school funding arrangements.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">from www.shutterstock.com</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Funding schools according to the needs of their students is something of a Holy Grail in Australia: something that we want very much but that has been very hard to achieve.</p>
<p>Every school has a “target” rate of funding for each of its students that takes into account the fact that disadvantage, disability, language difficulties and other factors make it more challenging and more expensive to educate some students than others.</p>
<p>But schools are not funded according to their needs-based target. Schools are funded based on a complex mix of <a href="https://theconversation.com/gonski-model-was-corrupted-but-labor-and-coalition-are-both-to-blame-65875">historical arrangements and special deals</a>. </p>
<p>Some schools are <a href="https://theconversation.com/yes-some-australian-private-schools-are-overfunded-heres-why-66212">over-funded</a> when compared to their target. But most schools are under-funded across independent, Catholic and government school sectors.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/147540/original/image-20161125-32049-7tq4pn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/147540/original/image-20161125-32049-7tq4pn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=415&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/147540/original/image-20161125-32049-7tq4pn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=415&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/147540/original/image-20161125-32049-7tq4pn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=415&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/147540/original/image-20161125-32049-7tq4pn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=522&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/147540/original/image-20161125-32049-7tq4pn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=522&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/147540/original/image-20161125-32049-7tq4pn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=522&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">ACT Independent schools receive combined government funding at over 150% of SRS.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Grattan school funding model, based on analysis of data from Commonwealth Department of Education and Training</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Lifting all schools to their target funding levels is extremely costly under the current model - we estimate that it would cost more than A$3.5 billion each and every year to fund all schools even at 95% of their target. </p>
<p>But times have changed and unprecedented low wages growth means that needs-based funding has never been easier to achieve than right now. </p>
<p><a href="https://grattan.edu.au/report/circuit-breaker/">We propose a new deal</a> that aligns funding to need for the same amount of money. We create big savings by reducing the automatic annual growth on school funding (indexation), affecting all schools. We then reallocate these funds to the most under-funded, getting all schools to their target by 2023. </p>
<h2>How will this work?</h2>
<p>The first step is to fix funding arrangements to set all schools on a course to their target within six years. In parallel, we recommend reviewing the formula for determining needs-based targets to ensure we are aiming for the right target, and adjusting targets if required.</p>
<p>The second step is to introduce transparency in funding arrangements through an independent body, to ensure funding goes where it is needed most. </p>
<p>The third step is to ensure that funding improves teaching and learning. We propose investing in new roles for expert teachers to drive improvement in our classrooms. </p>
<h2>What does the new model mean for schools?</h2>
<p>There will be winners and losers. But there already are. And the current arrangements ensure that the winners stay winners and losers stay losers because school funding grows according to what you got last year, not what you need this year. </p>
<p>Within six years we could level the playing field with very few schools experiencing any loss in real terms.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/147542/original/image-20161125-32035-s1ya3x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/147542/original/image-20161125-32035-s1ya3x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=415&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/147542/original/image-20161125-32035-s1ya3x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=415&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/147542/original/image-20161125-32035-s1ya3x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=415&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/147542/original/image-20161125-32035-s1ya3x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=522&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/147542/original/image-20161125-32035-s1ya3x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=522&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/147542/original/image-20161125-32035-s1ya3x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=522&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Grattan school funding model, based on analysis of data from Commonwealth Department of Education and Training</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Fixing funding arrangements</h2>
<p>To fix funding arrangements, we propose reducing the automatic annual growth (indexation) of both target and actual funding per student to recognise the low inflation environment we now live in. Historically education wages have grown each year by about 3% to 4%, but since 2015 this has been dropping and education wages are now growing at about 2.5% each year.</p>
<p>School costs are mostly wages, so school funding indexation should be linked to wage growth in order to maintain its real value over time. But the current (fixed) indexation rates were designed when wages growth was higher and are now over-generous.</p>
<p>Changing indexation arrangements will affect all schools – it slows the growth of every school’s funding target, as well as the actual funding they receive, in line with real cost growth. </p>
<p>The budgetary savings these changes generate are significant and should be redistributed to closing the needs-based funding gap.</p>
<p>We propose additional changes to funding arrangements to ensure all schools reach target funding levels within six years. </p>
<h2>Plan for overfunded schools</h2>
<p>For overfunded schools, we recommend freezing the growth of per student funding until they return to their target funding level. </p>
<p>For example, a school that is over-funded by 10% would receive no funding growth per student for four years, at which time it has returned to target and would then recieve normal funding growth. </p>
<p>This requires over-turning the Gillard government’s promise that <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/lateline/content/2012/s3572064.htm">“no school will lose a dollar”</a>. If no school loses a dollar, some overfunded schools will take more than a century (if ever) to return to target funding levels. </p>
<p>There is no doubt that this is politically challenging. </p>
<p>The independent schools lobby warned the Turnbull government not to treat it as an <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/dont-treat-us-as-an-easy-target-private-schools-issue-warning-over-funding-20160927-grphju.html">“easy target”</a> after education minister Simon Birmingham flagged the idea on <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/tv-and-radio/qa-simon-birmingham-says-some-private-schools-overfunded-20160926-grp1ji.html">ABC’s Q&A show in September</a>. </p>
<p>Yet, even with a freeze on indexation, many schools will take decades to return to target levels, because some schools are funded nearly three times as much as the formula says. A list was <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/full-list-1-billion-flowing-to-wealthy-private-schools-officially-classed-as-overfunded-20160930-grs6nz.html">published recently</a> in the Sydney Morning Herald. </p>
<p>For these highly overfunded schools we recommend year-on-year funding cuts over six years from 2018 to 2023 to spread the impact and ensure all schools reach 95-100% of their target funding levels by 2023. </p>
<p>While tough, these schools have been receiving far more than they need and the change will be easier for them to manage in a low inflation environment. And the most over-funded schools typically have high fees and get the bulk of their revenue from parents, not from the government. They are not the struggling schools in the system.</p>
<h2>Plan for underfunded schools</h2>
<p>Meanwhile, schools that are under-funded will receive boosted indexation to help them catch up over time. Schools that are very under-funded (below 90% of their target) will require top-up payments spread over six years to reach their target funding by 2023. </p>
<p>This will benefit schools in all sectors - in fact, some of the most under-funded schools in Australia are actually independent schools.</p>
<h2>What does this mean for budgets?</h2>
<p>The model will cost the Commonwealth exactly the same as the 2016 Budget over the next four years – and offers significant savings when compared to the funding arrangements under legislation. </p>
<p>The implications however are very different for individual states and for each school sector in each state. </p>
<p>Whether an individual state’s budget will be better or worse off under the model depends on the rate at which per student funding is growing at present (information not publicly available) and how well schools are currently funded compared to the target.</p>
<p>A state like Victoria with under-funded schools will need to step up under the model and spend more on their schools than they have in the past. But it will also receive more Commonwealth funding.</p>
<p>ACT government schools are currently over-funded schools, and the ACT could potentially bank savings under the compact. But it will also receive less Commonwealth funding.</p>
<h2>Funding must improve teaching and learning</h2>
<p>Fixing school funding arrangements – so that actual school funding matches target school funding – will help to maintain a fair and inclusive education system. </p>
<p>But fixing school funding arrangements is only part of the battle. Just as importantly, schools must spend their funding well.</p>
<p>We need structures and approaches that will improve teaching quality to ensure school funding is well spent. </p>
<p>To maximise student learning progress, teachers need to use evidence-based teaching practices in the classroom, including <a href="https://grattan.edu.au/report/targeted-teaching-how-better-use-of-data-can-improve-student-learning/">targeted teaching</a> and the types of practices described by John Hattie in <a href="http://visiblelearningplus.com">Visible Learning</a>. </p>
<p>We propose investing in teaching quality, through two new roles that recognise expertise in teaching.</p>
<p>Master Teachers and Instructional Leaders will work in and across schools to drive improvements in teaching effectiveness in their subject areas. These roles provide a mechanism for spreading the use of evidence-based teaching practices to all Australian classrooms.</p>
<p>The new model we propose is a circuit breaker. It aligns school funding to need, invests in teaching quality, and maintains most schools’ purchasing power, without breaking the budget.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/69406/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Grattan Institute began with contributions to its endowment of $15 million from each of the Federal and Victorian Governments. In order to safeguard its independence, Grattan Institute’s board controls this endowment. The funds are invested and Grattan uses the income to pursue its activities.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kate Griffiths does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>A new proposed deal on school funding delivers the Gonski funding within budget.Peter Goss, School Education Program Director, Grattan InstituteKate Griffiths, Associate, Grattan InstituteLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/415532015-05-09T08:54:36Z2015-05-09T08:54:36ZConservative victory means England’s school system will look like few others in the world<p>No-one foresaw the <a href="https://theconversation.com/conservatives-defy-forecasts-to-secure-victory-in-uk-election-41400">scale of the Conservative victory</a> – it exceeded even the limits of the party’s own expectations. Now, a majority Conservative government comes to power – unexpectedly and with sufficient lead over a divided and, for Labour and the Liberal Democrats, demoralised opposition. What will this newly confident government mean for education in general and schools in particular?</p>
<p>The <a href="https://theconversation.com/manifesto-check-conservatives-hold-the-course-with-schools-plan-40192">Conservative education manifesto</a> was long on aspiration. It promised that England would lead the world in mathematics and science; that there would be a place in a “good” primary school for every child; that every “failing” or coasting school would be turned into an academy to drive up standards; that universities would remain “world-leading”; and that further education would “improve”. But translating these – rightly aspirational – goals into policies will bring some difficult challenges.</p>
<p>David Cameron <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/david-cameron/11384575/David-Cameron-School-spending-per-pupil-will-fall-in-real-terms.html">ruled out</a> a real-terms increase in school spending, but promised to protect per-pupil spending. This means that school funding will increase in line with pupil numbers, but not with inflation or cost pressures, including National Insurance changes. </p>
<h2>Funding squeeze ahead</h2>
<p>The <a href="http://www.ifs.org.uk/publications/7669">Institute for Fiscal Studies</a> calculated that this meant schools could face cuts of up to 12% over the course of the parliament. Unlike their erstwhile coalition partners, the Liberal Democrats, the Conservatives declined to include further education in their ring fence, which raises the spectre that the further education budget could be under greater pressure. Already, planned post-16 funding changes are placing <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/education/2015/apr/28/schools-hidden-funding-crisis-teachers-education">a huge squeeze</a> on the breadth of curriculum in school sixth forms. </p>
<p>For universities, wage inflation, increased pension and National Insurance costs and cuts to capital budgets mean that the ceiling of £9,000 a year on undergraduate fees is a diminishing resource: while the Conservatives have <a href="http://www.itv.com/news/2015-05-03/hague-tories-have-not-ruled-out-tuition-fees-rise/">not ruled out </a> increasing the £9,000 fee cap, such a move would be politically challenging.</p>
<p>If funding is going to be tight, so too will accountability for both schools and pupils. The Conservatives promised to introduce a new test for pupils who do not reach expected levels in English and Mathematics at the end of Key Stage 2 (age 11). The promise drew widespread criticism from school leaders and teachers and the <a href="http://books.google.co.uk/books/about/Visible_Learning.html?id=lh7SZNCabGQC">international evidence on repeating tests</a> in successive years as a lever for improved attainment is generally negative. </p>
<p>They look to a tightening of demands on schools. It appears that they will require all pupils to take GCSEs in the English Baccalaureate subjects (English, mathematics, science, a language and history or geography), and <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2935690/3-500-coasting-schools-turned-academies-war-mediocrity-David-Cameron-remains-power.html">they have promised</a> to turn all schools they describe as “coasting” or “failing” into academies – essentially those with OFSTED grades 3 or 4. But while some academy groups have been extremely effective in improving the performance of struggling schools, not all have, and the struggle to find enough high-quality school sponsors looks to become increasingly difficult.</p>
<p>There is also, it appears, a commitment to a <a href="https://www.conservatives.com/manifesto">new accountability framework</a> to recognise teaching quality in universities drawing on the claimed parallel of the Research Excellence framework for research quality. This was something that was prefigured but never really developed in Labour’s <a href="http://econ.lse.ac.uk/staff/nb/Barr_Selcom030311.pdf">2003 universities White Paper</a>. </p>
<h2>Full speed ahead on free schools</h2>
<p>There will be further diversification of education provision and types. The Conservative promise <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-31791485">500 new “free” schools</a>, as well as new University Technical Colleges, a new further education network of National Colleges and a strong commitment to extending online education in universities. Schools of all types – including grammar schools – will <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/david-cameron/11417837/David-Cameron-Good-grammar-schools-should-be-allowed-to-expand.html">be allowed</a> to expand. </p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">David Cameron on free schools.</span></figcaption>
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<p>But there is little reference in the manifesto to ensuring that new and diversified school and further education provision will be in the places of highest need. Some University Technical Colleges <a href="https://www.tes.co.uk/news/school-news/breaking-news/second-utc-close-due-financial-challenges">have already closed</a>, and while some “free” schools have been a success, others have been well-publicised failures. Delivering diversity is a strong theme of the manifesto – but so is the commitment to ensure that there is a good primary school place for every child. The balance between the development of an education market in new provision (although <a href="https://theconversation.com/for-profit-state-schools-have-some-attractions-but-theyd-be-politically-toxic-31069">“for profit”</a> schools have previously been ruled out) and effectively planned provision will be difficult.</p>
<p>This is especially the case in the face of the biggest challenge facing the new government: the need to provide an additional 500,000 school places to meet demographic growth over the next five years. This effectively means something like an additional 25,000 teachers on top of the number needed to maintain teacher supply. The manifesto commits to (effectively) doubling the number of new maths and science teachers being trained each year – something which is easier said than done.</p>
<p>The Conservative poll success has been striking. At root, it means that the radical <a href="https://theconversation.com/goves-revolution-leaves-behind-a-fast-food-education-system-29190">Michael Gove reforms</a> – to governance, curriculum and assessment – will be embedded, and that the English school system will continue to be radically reformed. We will have a largely autonomous system of competing schools and school groups in a high accountability framework. It will look like few other publicly funded school systems in the world, and the challenge of delivering the high aspirations which – rightly – the Conservatives have offered for every child in such a framework should not be underestimated.</p>
<p>*** This <a href="https://ioelondonblog.wordpress.com/2015/05/08/conservative-victory-means-englands-school-system-will-look-like-few-others-in-the-world/">article</a> was also published on the IOE London Blog***</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/41553/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Chris Husbands does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The new majority Tory government now has the confidence in pursuing its aspirational education manifesto.Chris Husbands, Director of the Institute of Education and Professor of Education, UCLLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.